P. F. Chang warrior would like to give giant heart attack to you!
Thursday, September 23, 2010 at 19:39 Ancient Chinese warrior says: People too busy to read nutrition label get real bad surprise. Not a fortune cookie, but a heart attack!
That’s what the big ceramic warrior icon of P. F. Chang’s - iconic faux Chinese schlock imitation of food - would say if he could read the nutrition information from the back of the new, heavily advertised P. F. Changes Home Menu dinners.
Recently, I blogged about some truly regrettable faux Chinese frozen dinner entrees by Wanchai Ferry, where the sodium content was up to 81% - not a typo - of your daily sodium needs. Although P. F. Chang (Positively Fucking Chang’s) isn’t quite that bad, it’s still so far over and above what any nutritionist or doctor would recommend that there oughta be a law. But Sharron Angle and the Tea Party would prevent that, so you’re on your own to read the goddamn label.
The Shrimp Lo Mein weighs in at only 65% of your daily sodium intake. That’s 1550 mg of salt in one freaking serving. The recommended daily allowance is now 1500 mg as part of a 2,000 calorie diet ( for an adult male). If you look further down on the label, you can see that P. F. Chang is basing their percentages on a whopping daily amount of 2,400 mg. What a sick joke.
According to new diet guidelines:
“Another key change is in the sodium intake recommendation. The 2005 guidelines put it at 2,300 mg per day for the general population. However, since 70% of Americans have diabetes, heart disease, obesity, or some other risk factor, the new recommended daily allowance is 1,500 mg. That was the number set in the old guidelines only for the high-risk group.”
This reflects the current thinking in light of the increasingly unhealthy American population.
I went through all the products in this dangerous lineup and the lowest is still far too high in sodium. The Sweet and Sour Chicken is ONLY 32% of your daily sodium intake (based on their bogus 2005 RDA guidelines). In light of current sodium recommendations the P. F. Chang Sweet and Sour Chicken is providing 100% of your daily sodium intake. Whoa. Talk about playing fast and loose with the numbers. This is another good reason for government regulation. Industry can obviously not be trusted to not game the consumer.
Why is sodium so bad for us?
There are so many reasons, but here are a few:
1- Osteoporosis. If you are a woman and worried about thinning bones and osteoporosis as I am ( I have osteoporosis due to cancer treatments) then strongly consider reducing the sodium in your diet. Salt can pose a great obstacle to a sturdy skeleton. Research has found that postmenopausal women with a high-salt diet lose more bone minerals than other women of the same age.
“The salt content of the typical American diet is one of the reasons why calcium requirements are so high,” says Linda K. Massey, PhD, RD, a professor of human nutrition at Washington State University in Spokane. “Generally speaking, for every 2,300 milligrams of sodium you take in, about 40 milligrams of calcium is lost in the urine,” Massey explains.
2- High Blood Pressure. This is where you’re messing with the balance of water in your body. High blood pressure is a silent killer of thousands every year.
3-Ventricular Hypertrophy and Heart Failure. This is abnormal heart development where the heart muscle becomes stressed and enlarged - then weak and failed.
4- Kidney stones and renal failure. Kidney stones can develop when you have too much sodium in your system. It has to go somewhere. Passing a kidney stone is extremely painful. My late father did and I remember what he went through. Mess around with this enough and you have kidney failure and a bright future hooked up to a dialysis machine.
5- Dehydration and Edema. Too much salt forces water out of the bloodstream. You’re tired, thirsty and can’t drink enough water to feel good again. It’s a vicious cycle. Bloating - you can’t zip your fat jeans, not to mention the skinny ones - is a result along with dull headaches, body aches and trouble concentrating. You feel stupid and unable to focus. This can be a job killer in an uncertain economy. Duh.
6- Shortness of breath. Not a good thing if you are prone to asthma or other breathing problems, do you think? It’s because fluid is building up in your lungs. Yikes. This can send you to the hospital if you have Congestive Heart Failure like a lot of older people.
7- Ulcers and cancer. Sodium messes with the acid balance of your body and stomach. If you have a problem with acid reflux - then cut the sodium. Persistant acid reflux has been linked with stomach cancers - so avoidable.
8- Electrolyte and hormone imbalance. Excessive salt intake impacts both your electrolyte balance and your hormones. It can severely hinder the conduction of nerve impulses and induce symptoms like dizziness, muscle cramps and shakiness. You can also have impaired sensory response and feel disoriented and nauseous. Studies have shown that a high salt diet can often lead to higher stress levels and overeating, making you much more susceptible to depression, anxiety and obesity.
Wow. Do you have enough crap going on in your life to deal with, without this to deal with too? I mean, eat a bunch of garbage processed food like P. F. Chang and watch your remaining ability to cope go down the toilet.
Here’s another thought: P. F. Chang - along with similar products like Wanchai Ferry are ripping you off. You work hard for a dollar to spend on groceries for your family. Do you really want to spend it on a fancy package of soy sauce colored salt. Jeeze, just go buy a giant box of salt and hand it to kids with a spoon.
This isn’t food. It’s faux food. Industrial food products. Food concepts.
Gee, you’d think that would be enough for people to avoid high sodium crap like P. F. Chang’s or Wanchai Ferry.
If you think P. F. Chang’s Home Menu meals suck as much as I do, go this this Contact Us website now and tell them what you think of their bullshit product.
Oh, and BTW - this is why I won’t go to their restaurants either.
